Today at school.....

[nickuk]

As some of you know, I teach high school French.

I discovered today that one of my pupils is a fellow washer enthusiast! I won't bore you with too much detail - suffice to say he could name all the washers we have in school, always does the washing at home, knows what models are available, has washer pics on his mobile...when I showed him my old '79 Hotpoint (on my phone) he recognised it straight away and said `that's one of the first 1000 Hotpoints!' The guy is 11 years old, born in 1995...........

It was the first time I have come face to face with a washer lover and it was a `moment' for me, but I think it meant even more to him. I took the opportunity, of course, to reassure him that he shouldn't feel bad about it as some kids are harsh on him and he said his parents aren't all that supportive.

At least now he knows there is someone he can talk to and I won't let the other kids get away with picking on him anymore which he had through primary school.

So I just wanted to share that with you guys.

Nick

 

[toggleswitch]

C'est tres bon!

Excellent. I am sure he will appreciate knowing "he is not the only one out there" and having a positive supporting role-model.

 

[vivalalavatrice]

Well we

YEAH! Every day one more! We were the firsts but now the Washers' lovers people is growing up!

You Nick found one of your pupil and I found one of my professor at University...I discovery he's a washer's lover too!

And how many people are we finding more?!?!? A lot... be hopeful and washers won't be left in the basements or in the closets alone any long...they'll show us all their action!

It seems like a myth but...how to tell it otherwise?

Bye
Diomede

 

[lavamat_jon]

Nick - have you guided him towards this website? It's great that he has a role model too... and that he no longer has the "only one" syndrome!

Jon

 

[aquarius1984]

Fantastic!!!!!

Great to see so many people "coming out" linking all walks of life together.

Your school has many washers?

My high school when i started in 1995 had a Hoover Logic 1200 and matching dryer in Home Ec or whatever its called now Food Technology or something.

And in the Lunch-hall kitchens they had a Hoover Logic 800 with the round door and brown dial.

Both were still there when i left in 2000.

I often mean to pop back and have a chat with my old home ec teacher who funnily had a thing for Tesco when it came to coursework about food production chains and the retail side.
She would love to know i now work for them, i would like to get into doing some presentation type things for the children if the focus on Food Technology is still about factory production lines and retail. Children love to have visitors in to talk about something and answer questions directly as a change from the usual teacher.

Maybe nows the time to see if the Logic is still doing its daily teatowels on the wool wash or if some hunk of junk is in its place.

WOuld be great to get him signed up here though!

Nick

 

[carlstock]

C'est magnifique!

Hi, Nick.

How sweet.

One good thing I believe about young people liking washing machines it that, at the very least, they will know how to use them. There are plenty of young men out there who simply know nothing about washing clothes, dishes, etc. – but they should.

Your example reminds me of something that happened to me a few years ago as a teaching assistant. When I was not as well unwell, I was able to work unpaid at the secondary school I attended, although I now help the same school with their website from home. I am welcome back in school if I ever improve, though, which I relish because I am older and feel more confident, and one of my friends is a teacher there, too!

I was sitting at a computer, alone in the room, and I felt a tap on my shoulder. A boy, aged 11 or 12, said, meekly, “Sir, thank you for helping me earlier. You’re always nice and help me finish my work off, and you don’t get annoyed with me.” This was in ICT (Computing), and he had to come back at lunchtime to finish off his work, so I helped him – but did not do the work for him of course – so that he could grasp what he had to do. Without too much help, he managed to finish the work himself. I did have to sit with him for around 30 minutes to ensure he knew exactly what he had to do.

My response was: “Well, that’s OK, [name]. Thank you. This is what I am paid to do. If you listen, work hard and complete your work, no-one here will get angry with you. If you really do get stuck, we will go always through it with you again and again – you must ask and not be embarrassed. Because I am a teaching assistant, I have a lot more time on my hands than a teacher. If a teacher does get annoyed at you, it can be upsetting, but they are not necessarily annoyed at you personally.”

Really made me day. It wasn’t really for me – I was just pleased that he had a smile on his face because he was quite despondent at not being able to finish his work during the lesson and having to come back at lunchtime. I just appreciated his honesty.

Regards,

Carl